The Hogg Foundation is hosting a one-day conference in Houston on June 23 about trauma's impact on children and youth, their families and their communities. The conference is free and open to Texas residents only. Lunch will be provided by the Hogg Foundation. Marriage and family therapists, professional counselors and social workers may receive continuing education units from the Hogg Foundation at no charge. Space is limited and seats are filling up fast, so register online today. Registration deadline: noon central time on Thursday, June 9, 2011.

Stephany Bryan and Tammy Heinz, program officers and consumer and family liaisons at the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, will be interviewed live on the Dr. Carol Show, 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 18.

CHILDREN AT RISK co-authored an op-ed with Dr. Terry Snow Smith, Director of Dallas County Juvenile Services and Dr. Octavio Martinez, Executive Director of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health. ... Dr. Terry Snow Smith informed CHILDREN AT RISK that because of the op-ed, conversations started happening in Dallas County to see how a juvenile mental health court could be implemented in Dallas County. As of now Dallas County is in the planning stages of implementing a juvenile mental health court.

AUSTIN- ... With state lawmakers considering massive cuts to community mental-health services, Texas' Hogg Foundation is piloting a program to provide more training opportunities for psychologists, hoping it will lead to more mental health resources in underserved communities.

One of Oakwood Cemetery's most notable tenants is philanthropist and patron of the arts Miss Ima Hogg. Miss Ima remained a spiritual, grounded, determined, and caring community leader well into her 80s. Save Austin's Cemeteries welcomes Wayne Bell as he shares his personal reminiscences of Miss Ima gained over a decade-long friendship. He credits Miss Ima as an inspiration for how to enlist others to join in the charge and think positively to accomplish a vision. June 25, 2011 at 1:30 p.m. at the Austin History Center, 810 Guadalupe, Austin.

Backing away from most proposed health care cuts, legislative budget writers avoided the prospect of closing down nursing homes, forcing people with disabilities into institutions and shutting low-income people out of Texas' health care system. But in avoiding the nightmare scenarios, the House-Senate budget conference committee left a gaping shortfall in the state's health and human services budget: a $4.8 billion Medicaid bill that will come due in the first part of 2013.

AUSTIN - Comptroller Susan Combs added $1.2 billion to her two-year revenue estimate Tuesday, which in most sessions might loosen the state's purse strings enough to help lawmakers close a budget deal. But state GOP leaders had already been expecting $700 million of that boost, so the Republican comptroller's announcement didn't perceptibly change the dynamics of a spending plan that could slash education, prison spending and other major parts of state government.

AUSTIN -- Key lawmakers acknowledged the growing possibility of a midsummer special session Monday as the House and Senate remained at odds over education funding, even as budget negotiators signed off on the lion's share of a two-year state spending plan.

Senate and House budget negotiators have agreed to close the 102-year-old Central Unit near Sugar Land to save $50 million, the first such closure of an entire maximum-security lockup in state history. ... Both Madden and Whitmire said funding for Texas' prison treatment and rehabilitation programs have been funded at acceptable levels, meaning that additional convicts would be successfully diverted from state lockups onto parole and into community-based rehab programs that are much less expensive than incarceration in a state prison.

Texas medical schools feel like the scorned children of the state's education budget. ... At a time when Texas is grappling with a dire - and growing - physician shortfall, medical schools say they won't be able to fully fund the roughly 5,600 students currently enrolled, and could be forced to curb new admissions next year.

... With Texas facing a $23 billion budget shortfall, state lawmakers have proposed slashing Medicaid rates by more than 30 percent. A reduction that large could put many community homes-including Mary Lee-out of business. It's not clear where many residents would go or how they would live.

The University of Texas-Pan American (UTPA) begins Center for Bilingual Studies

Hispanic Tips

May 13, 2011

... Recognizing the Rio Grande Valley's uniqueness of having most of its inhabitants speaking two languages, UTPA is forming the Center for Bilingual Studies to examine bilingual communities and how they are shaping the future of the country. Faculty and others involved in the center will also be studying the literature, arts, politics, health care and other facets of bilingual culture, Guajardo said.

The governments of Bryan and College Station have been touting the potential of a bioresearch corridor along their shared border for months. They are now close to formally teaming up to develop the project. ... The biocorridor has largely been a project of Texas A&M and the goal is to attract medical and biotechnology companies to Brazos County to take advantage of research and workforce coming out of the university.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - The Birmingham-based HealthSouth Corp. says it is selling its six long-term, acute-care hospitals to LifeCare Holdings Inc. for about $120 million. ... LifeCare is based in Plano, Texas. It is buying HealthSouth facilities in Florida, Louisiana, Pennsylvania and Texas.

Doctors are using digital medical tools to consult with patients, better diagnose common ailments and learn about new treatments, transforming the traditional roles in the medical arena.... Visits with licensed physicians are scheduled by demand, any time of day or evening, just like current telephone or video chat consults. The Dallas, Texas-based firm reports half of their physicians are already using their mobile devices to perform these consults.

Reporting from San Francisco - A new state department would be formed to manage California's violence-plagued mental hospitals under a proposal in the governor's Monday budget revision. The push to create a Department of State Hospitals - and eventually do away with the Department of Mental Health, which now oversees the facilities - comes as lawmakers and employee unions press for changes to address increasing patient assaults on fellow patients and staff.

HONOLULU (AP) - Gov. Neil Abercrombie said Tuesday he plans to tackle homelessness over the short term with a new 90-day plan that would provide mental health services and help people move into housing.

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) - Nevada lawmakers are adding back $6 million in state funds to save an alternative court program for people with mental illness, though the move - and other welfare and mental health add-backs - widens an already-gaping budget hole.

Inadequate staffing levels and lax supervision led to a series of alleged sexual attacks on youth at a prominent Chicago psychiatric hospital, according to a new report released Tuesday by the state Department of Children and Family Services.

When police officers and mental health professionals respond to an emergency call, their priorities rarely mesh. For the mental health workers, the person in the midst of a breakdown or psychotic episode is a patient and is the most important person at the scene. But for police, that same individual is seen often as a suspect. In those cases, the family members and neighbors are the officer's chief concern.

State Medicaid directors want flexibility to trim rolls, control costs

Kansas Health Institute News Service

May 16, 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Governors seeking more flexibility from the federal officials to manage Medicaid costs have a new ally. The National Association of Medicaid Directors recently joined the governors in urging federal officials to "find more workable interpretations" of federal rules that limit states' abilities to adjust eligibility requirements for both Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

People suffering from serious mental illnesses like schizophrenia or bipolar disorder can have a life expectancy 10 to 15 years lower than the UK average. Researchers tracked the lives of more than 30,000 patients through the use of electronic medical records. They found that many were dying early from heart attack, stroke and cancer rather than suicide or violence. Mental health groups say vulnerable people need to be offered better care to prevent premature deaths.

I received press release today via email from juvenile justice advocates with the same headline as this blog post urging the Legislature to fund diversion programming and intensive supervision for mentally ill youth. ... I certainly agree with the overall sentiment, but it's an open question whether there are sufficient service providers available throughout the state, particularly with looming budget cuts to community based mental health services.

According to Mike Ward at the Statesman, Texas will close just one prison, which as readers know is an historic first but also less than this blogger would prefer. I'm saddened, though, that they're redirecting the savings not to diversion programming or community supervision but to lease private prison beds. Disappointing. Savings from prison closures should go to diversion programming, not private prisons. The goal should be to reduce incarceration levels, not to plan for failure.

Children of deployed service members have increased rates of psychiatric hospitalization

Los Angeles Times

May 17, 2011

Honolulu -- Many studies have looked at the mental health impact on members of the U.S. armed forces deployed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the impact on their spouses. But little formal research has been directed at how children of deployed service members fare. A study presented this week at the American Psychiatric Assn. annual meeting showed a link between a parent's deployment of six months or more and mental illness in children severe enough to require hospitalization.

HONOLULU - A significant number of children in the U.S. lose a parent to death each year. But a new study shows that, after a normal and expected period of bereavement, most children recover from their grief.

A new Australian study finds that young adults who take risks driving are more likely to experience mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. Conversely, mental distress also leads to risky driving patterns among youth.

In a study funded by a manufacturer of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine researchers finds that ADHD meds do not increase the risk of cardiovascular events in children and adolescents.

HONOLULU - Diabetes can be a challenge to control, depression can be difficult to treat and keep in remission, and growing evidence suggests the combination can be especially problematic for patients. And as if this adverse synergy were not bad enough, having these two conditions more than doubles the likelihood that a patient will develop dementia, Dr. Wayne J. Katon said.

Melatonin Analogue Agomelatine Could Have Role In Treating Major Depression

Medical News Today

May 17, 2011

A New Drug Class paper published Online First by The Lancet looks at the use of melatonin and its analogues-traditionally used to modify the body's internal clock (circadian system)-in the treatment of major depression.

HONOLULU - The antipsychotic ziprasidone does not appear to work as well in patients with bipolar disorder who are either obese or hyperglycemic, according to a study funded by the drug's maker, Pfizer.

For decades, scientists have searched for a biologically-based test to predict who may be at risk for psychosis. Pencil-and-paper, behavioral tests already exist for the disorder. One strategy looks at abnormal physiological findings of people with schizophrenia and then reviews the abnormalities to see if they can be used as a diagnostic or prognostic tool to help predict risk for developing the illness.

How can behavioral health organizations find sustainable sources of funding for the full range of services needed by children - particularly in this time of state and federal budget cuts? Learn practical strategies for financing high-quality children's services and making maximum use of available funding, both now and in the future. Tuesday, May 24, 2011, 2 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. eastern time.

Austin Travis County Integral Care is hosting a community forum to discuss its upcoming budget planning session and the potential implications of this year's legislative session. Critical information and topics including local city, state and federal funding changes will be discussed, followed by a question and answer session. The forum is free and open to the public. Consumers, family members, providers and partner agencies are encouraged to attend and share input on these critical issue that directly impact our community. 5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 24.